


Splash

by masongirl



Category: Band of Brothers (TV 2001)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Developing Relationship, Established Relationship, F/M, Female Lipton, Female Winters, First Love, Fluff, Gender or Sex Swap, Hurt/Comfort, Scarification, Summer, Swimming Pools, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-24
Updated: 2020-07-24
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:08:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,069
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25494385
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/masongirl/pseuds/masongirl
Summary: Charlotte is nervous about joining the boys in the pool, but her boyfriend helps her relax.
Relationships: Carwood Lipton/Ronald Speirs
Comments: 2
Kudos: 16





	Splash

**Author's Note:**

> Written for a nice anon request on Tumblr. :)

"And one, two, three, go!" Ron exclaims, standing straight-backed on the deck of the pool, and starts playing the music for the boys' mock synchro swimming routine. 

Charlotte laughs so hard that her sun lounger shakes. They are at Nix's ridiculously opulent place, having an impromptu pool party in the scorching afternoon sunshine. Nix looks hungover, hiding behind his sunglasses in the shade of a large maple, but he smirks when George's flailing legs splash water out of the pool and it sprinkles on Dixie's back. She cries out in surprise and moves to a lounger further away from the frolicking boys to read her book in peace. Meanwhile, Babe and George fall into a contagious fit of giggles after their pitiful attempt at a lift, and Joe throws a beach ball at them from the other end of the pool.

"Lip, we need a girl on the team." George calls out, smiling wide enough to reveal his crooked teeth. 

"Dixie's right there." Charlotte waves him off, but she knows it's just an excuse to coax her into the water. After all, she hasn't even loosened the towel around her hips yet.

It's not as easy as it seems. She wishes she could just get up and tackle Ron into the pool, then play with her best friend in her polka dot bikini like every normal girl would, but something holds her back. It would be the first time she showed her  _ other _ scar to anyone besides her mother. It's stupid to be afraid, she knows, and she's used to being stared at anyway, but she doesn't want them to see her in a different light. Especially Ron. 

They've been dating for ten months now and it feels like the greatest thing that has ever happened to her. She remembers the day she started falling for him so clearly - it was the second week of sophomore year and Ron has just transferred from a posh private school downtown. 

_ "Lip, the new guy's watching you." George told her ten minutes before their first class of the day was due to start. _

_ Charlotte sighed. Sitting in the very back of the room, Ron was a bit of an odd one, but she wasn't surprised he was just as curious about her scar as everyone else. "Ignore him, it's just the usual." _

_ "Um, I don't think so." _

_ "What?" _

_ "He's coming over. Shit." George swore and a second later, Charlotte found herself in the focus of the most intense stare she had ever seen.  _

_ "Hi." Ron greeted her, but the inflection was off somehow. It was too flat, like he wasn't comfortable being friendly that way. He gestured at the empty desk next to hers. "Is this seat free?" _

_ "No," George muttered at the same time Charlotte blurted out a reflexive "yes". _

_ Ron sat down without a single glance at George. He stuck his hand out stiffly. "I'm Ron. You must be Charlotte."  _

_ God, she was so confused - she must have looked it too, because George jumped right in, trying to ease the awkward tension. "And I'm Luz. Do you like Physics? I've been reading a book on anti-gravity and I just can't put it down." _

_ Ron blinked at him. His expression was completely blank. "I prefer historical fiction." _

_ Charlotte thinks she laughed, despite George's fake sobs about his failed joke, and Ron's lips started curving up. He tilted his head at her, and she knows now that it was his way of trying to be flirty. "I've seen your picture on the wall outside, above the hockey trophies. Do you still play?" _

And that - that was the first moment when her heart skipped a beat, because Ron wasn't there to collect gossip material about her accident or to satisfy some gory curiosity, he was genuinely interested in her and her sports career, if you can call it that. He didn't care about the scar running across her cheek, about the lack of makeup or the strength of her arms. She hopes he won't be repulsed by her other scar either. She kind of wants to try third base, maybe, if he wants it too, but she'll have to push through this little mental block first.

"Liiip, help me." George whines as he tries to climb onto some inflatable monstrosity that looks like a unicorn and Joe topples him over. She just shakes her head while he faceplants into the water.

Ron walks over to her in his tiny black speedos and crouches down by her hip. His tan skin and messy hair are in sharp contrast with his usual dead serious voice. "Can I convince you to get into the water?"

Charlotte gives him a gentle smile. "I think I'll be fine just watching you boys."

Ron looks up at her with his best puppy eyes, but there's nothing innocent in them, he looks rather playful and devious instead. His hand creeps up to the knot of her towel and tugs it loose, and before she could react, he ducks and kisses the top of her thigh.

"Ron!" She gasps, scandalised and a little embarrassed, but she breaks into a smile when he hugs her around the waist and rests his head on her stomach. Despite the warmth of his skin, the cool wetness dripping from his hair makes her shudder.

"Come join us." He insists. "Someone needs to get Luz under control."

"Uh-huh, so that's where you're coming from." She looks up to see George and Babe competing over their cannonball jump techniques.

Ron's back rumbles under her palms as he chuckles. "I've never claimed to be selfless."

"You sure haven't." She agrees, amused, and lets him pull the towel further away from her hip. When it's gone and the raised flesh of her scar is visible, dark and obvious in the bright light, she tenses up. Her gaze is fixed on the aquamarine pool because she doesn't want to see Ron's face when he discovers just how close the whole thing is to her groin. What does he think? Is it really as ugly as she thinks it is?

She feels the press of lips on her marred skin. It's the only acknowledgement - then Ron's pulling her to her feet and towards the water, at a crazy, exhilarated run, and she doesn't have the time to think it through before they fall into it with a splash of waves.

  
  
_~End~_

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback is love 🙂


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